Vanderbilt center fielder Rustan Rigdon attempts to steal home

(The Center Square) – After two years of hearings, whistleblower testimony and document reviews, Minnesota House Republicans say they’ve uncovered what they describe as an “unprecedented” pattern of fraud in Minnesota.

The sweeping 84-page oversight report, adopted Wednesday by the Republican-led Minnesota House Fraud Prevention and State Agency Oversight Committee, concludes a two-year investigation into fraud throughout Minnesota’s taxpayer-funded welfare programs.

“The report outlines the ‘anatomy of fraud’ and the failure of the [Gov. Tim] Walz administration to take action,” said Rep. Kristin Robbins, R-Maple Grove, who chaired the now-adjourned committee.

Robbins explained the report is intended to serve as both a record of findings and a warning about how fraud can spread when government fails in oversight.

“We, through the whistleblowers, really did uncover how there had been a cover up,” Robbins told The Center Square in an exclusive interview following the vote. “They weren’t just sort of unaware of the fraud. They were aware of it and actively allowing it to continue or suppressing people who are trying to call it out.”

The report asserts that by 2019, senior officials in the Walz administration were aware of significant fraud risks in child care assistance programs but failed to act, essentially creating a "culture of fraud."

“The Walz Administration ignored and consciously downplayed shocking levels of fraud across more than a dozen Medicaid waiver programs,” the report states. “Despite having sufficient authority to take action to prevent fraud and the authority to place new controls when necessary, the Walz Administration allowed the fraud explode to unprecedented levels.”

It further claims that whistleblowers who raised concerns were ignored or retaliated against and that oversight warnings from the Office of the Legislative Auditor were not adequately implemented.

“When diligent and courageous government employees reported fraud and tried to get action, the Walz Administration ignored, demoted, and retaliated against whistleblowers,” the report states, adding that those who did speak out were often accused of “being racists.”

“This complicit acceptance of fraud by the Democrat leaders allowed a culture of fraud to take root in Minnesota,” it says.

The committee was created in January 2025 as part of a House power-sharing agreement after the chamber was tied. It was the first oversight committee of its kind in Minnesota legislative history and was tasked with holding hearings on fraud prevention and agency oversight.

“The scope of the fraud is staggering,” Robbins said during the committee’s final hearing. “We have made enormous progress in exposing fraud, strengthening internal controls and bringing a culture of accountability to state government, but there is more work to do.”

A central theme of the report is what Republicans call the “anatomy of fraud,” describing a repeatable playbook used by criminals across multiple programs.

The report says fraud typically begins when providers enter programs with “significant federal money, no enrollment caps, and low barriers to entry,” then escalate billing through falsified attendance records, duplicate claims and shell-company arrangements.

“We’ve seen the same pattern over and over and over,” Robbins said. “We have to clamp down on it right away.”

Robbins explained the committee’s hearings revealed that fraud was not isolated to one program or agency but instead spanned multiple systems over many years.

“All of these failures have created opportunities for serial fraudsters to steal billions from Minnesota taxpayers across multiple programs for years,” the report states.

The report also alleges that state agencies relied too heavily on self-attestation rather than documentation and verification, creating what it calls “predictable” vulnerabilities.

“When a program requires little more than an online form to become a provider, with no documentation, pre-approval site visits, capital investment, or infrastructure, fraud flourishes,” the report states.

Much of the committee’s recommendations focus on tightening eligibility standards, increasing oversight authority and modernizing fraud detection tools.

One of the report’s central proposals is the creation of an independent Office of Inspector General within the executive branch with investigative authority to pursue fraud across agencies. Other recommendations include extending the statute of limitations for public program fraud to 10 years and creating criminal penalties for falsifying information submitted to the Office of the Legislative Auditor or state oversight bodies.

The report also calls for mandatory electronic verification systems for attendance-based programs such as child care, autism services, sober homes and non-emergency medical transportation, arguing that paper or attestation-based systems are too easily manipulated.

“Programs billed based on attestation of attendance are magnets for fraudsters,” the report states. “We’ve learned that the ‘anatomy of fraud’ contains many elements, but it starts with the reality that fraud is a crime of opportunity. While criminals are intent on scamming taxpayers, they are only able to do so if the conditions are right.”

The committee also recommends requiring unannounced site visits before providers can enroll in public programs, along with full disclosure of ownership structures and financial capacity reviews.

Another proposal would create automatic “stop-payment” triggers if program spending grows more than 50% year-over-year.

“This trigger, which would immediately stop payment when spending grows by more than 50% of the previous year, would incentivize the oversight taxpayers deserve and expect,” the report says.

Additional recommendations include expanded use of artificial intelligence to detect irregular billing patterns, mandatory reporting from agencies on oversight gaps, and stronger whistleblower tracking systems.

“State agencies should proactively tell legislators where they lack oversight of programs or gaps in statute,” the report states.

Democrat lawmakers on the committee strongly objected to both the report’s conclusions and the process used to adopt it—as well as the existence of the committee itself.

Rep. Dave Pinto, DFL-St. Paul, criticized the timing of the report’s release and said Democrats were not meaningfully involved in drafting it.

“This document came together without any input, any review, anything from three of the eight members of the committee,” Pinto said.

Rep. Emma Greenman, DFL-Minneapolis, said the committee had strayed from its stated purpose.

“This committee is called the Fraud Prevention and Government Oversight Committee, not the make the case and picture what you think the Democratic Party is,” Greenman said.

Republicans, however, defended the report as a necessary record of findings from the committee’s two-year investigation.

Robbins said the goal of the report was to preserve the work of the committee, regardless of which party is in power in Minnesota in the years ahead.

“If this is the only session in the history of the Minnesota Legislature where we actually had the guts to have an oversight committee,” she said, “I want there to be a record of our work.”

BOZEMAN, Mont. - Bozeman Municipal Court and the nonprofit HRDC are partnering for the second Food for Fines event, in which defendants can trade nonperishable food items in exchange for credit toward their fines. The event is scheduled for May 29 from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Bozeman Public Safety Center. 

Each donated nonperishable item is equivalent to $10 of credit, up to $200 (or 20 items). 

“Due to income levels, not everyone experiences a $200 penalty the same way,” Judge Karolina Tierney said in a press release. “Those who are low-income are going to feel that penalty much more significantly. That’s why we’re hosting this event. Defendants still need to be accountable for crimes they have committed, but by providing food items in lieu of cash, they can take responsibility, complete their sentence, and help a worthy cause at the same time.”

Parking tickets are ineligible for credit. Defendants are also ineligible, according to a press release, if they are only paying restitution, have an active warrant, are in collections for fines or restitution, have a deferred prosecution agreement or are completing community service in lieu of fines. 

“Everyone deserves the opportunity to give back in meaningful ways," President and CEO of HRDC Heather Grenier said. "Every food item donated during Food for Fines will help us stock the shelves of our local food banks and make a real difference for our neighbors struggling to pay rent and still afford groceries."

For more information about the program or event, visit the City of Bozeman website. 

(The Center Square) – The U.S. Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision on Thursday, ruled that a lower court can determine an arbitration award in an employment discrimination case. 

The case, Jules v. Andre Balazs Properties, focuses on Adrian Jules, an employee of a hotel operated by Balazs. The Cheateau Marmont Hotel in Los Angeles ended Jules' employment in March 2020, citing staffing issues due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Jules filed a lawsuit in federal court against Balazs alleging employment discrimination. 

The case was sent to arbitration, where an impartial third-party reviewed the dispute instead of going to court. The federal court did not dismiss the case, but instead waited on a decision pending the arbitration agreement. 

The arbiter ruled against Jules and awarded Balasz $34,500 in sanctions. The federal court affirmed the award and dismissed further claims against Jules. 

However, Jules argued that the federal court could not affirm the award. He said the case did not belong in federal court even though the issues he brought were considered federal jurisdiction. 

Justices on the court unanimously disagreed. Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in the court's majority opinion, said Jules' arguments did not hold up.

"Federal courts have the power to incorporate private settlements into orders of the court when resolving claims that are the subject of those settlements," Sotomayor wrote. 

Sotomayor argued that the Federal Arbitration Act, which authorizes a federal court to assist in affirming and arbitration agreement, allowed the court to rule on the decision. 

"Because those claims were sufficient to establish the District Court’s jurisdiction in this case, they also established the District Court’s authority to resolve the motions to confirm or vacate the arbitral award resolving those claims," Sotomayor wrote. 

(The Center Square) - The U.S. Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision Thursday, agreed that states can protect individuals injured in trucking accidents. 

The case, Montgomery v. Caribe Transport, focused on Shawn Montgomery, who sustained severe and permanent injuries after his tractor trailer was struck by a truck driven under Caribe Transport's authority in Illinois.

Montgomery said C.H. Robinson, the company who hired Caribe Transport, was responsible for negligent hiring. C.H. Robinson said Montogomery's claim was preempted by the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act. 

The Federal Aviation Adminsitration Authorization Act allows transportation agencies to preempt state laws in relation to the pricing, routes and services of the trucking industry. Justices on the high court said the act does not preempt negligent hiring claims. 

"States retain authority to regulate safety 'with respect to motor vehicles' under the Act," Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote. 

Barrett said the FAAAA has an important exception aimed at protecting individuals from safety risks that allows it to be prosecuted in the injury case. 

"C.H. Robinson knew (or should have known) that choosing Caribe Transport to move goods was reasonably likely to cause an accident," Barrett wrote. "Montgomery’s negligent-hiring claim falls within the FAAAA’s safety exception, which saves it from preemption."

Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Samuel Alito wrote concurring opinions with Barrett. Kavanaugh said C.H. Robinson is as equally liable for a lawsuit as Caribe Transport, the broker agency, due to safety concerns in hiring.

"It is hard to read the statute as written and conclude that Congress subtly sliced and diced state tort law so that trucking companies would be subject to state tort suits for accidents, but brokers would operate free of any such tort liability," Kavanaugh wrote. 

With the justices settling a question over preemption, the case will move forward in the lower courts for further consideration and damages.

(The Center Square) - Washington Attorney General's Office officials described the state Supreme Court as “favorable a venue as we’re likely to get” to thwart a referendum on a new millionaire's tax, according to emails between a former court clerk who works for the AGO and other staff.

Yet, Deputy Solicitor General Karl Smith, who clerked for the court from 2009 through 2012 according to his Linkedin profile, hypothesized that justices might also "punt" to the voters about whether to uphold the tax so they could avoid having to make the decision themselves, the emails show.

“Giving the People a chance to reject it by referendum might be an attractive option to justices who want to punt on the constitutional question,” Smith wrote to Solicitor General Noah Purcell in an April 7 draft response to Let’s Go Washington’s lawsuit filed against the Secretary of State’s Office after it rejected a referendum on the millionaire’s tax.

The Secretary of State's Office emailed Wednesday afternoon to say they mistakenly released the records.

The "Office of the Secretary of State (OSOS) provided you with records in response to your Public Records Request No. 26-447," the message said. "OSOS has since determined that certain attorney-client privileged documents were inadvertently included in the records provided." The email requested that The Center Square delete and not report on the released records. But the news wire declined to do that because the records were newsworthy and expose behind the scenes actions about a significant issue that is of public interest to taxpayers. 

One of the arguments contained in the draft document was that the court should reject hearing the case because “petitioners have a plain, speed, and adequate remedies at law.”

Download PDF

Smith wrote in the draft document to Purcell that “from your email, I understood you were disinclined to make this argument, noting the Supreme Court is as favorable a venue as we’re likely to get.”

The state Supreme Court ultimately ruled against Let’s Go Washington.

Attorney Joel Ard, who represented Let's Go Washington in the case before the Supreme Court, said the court was wrong but it was not appropriate for the Attorney General's staff to have these discussions.

"We’re still in the position where we think they (state Supreme Court) got it wrong," he told The Center Square after the news wire described the documents it obtained. "It’s interesting to see the Attorney General politicizing the court.”

He added that “this isn’t the first case I’ve lost before the state Supreme Court, and of course I think they got all those wrong.”

The Citizen Action Defense Fund has filed a lawsuit against the millionaire’s tax, whose legal team includes former State Attorney General Rob McKenna and former State Supreme Court Justice Phil Talmadge.

CADF Executive Director Jackson Maynard said the emails show the importance of the coming election to fill open Supreme Court seats.

"It’s another peak behind the curtain," Maynard told The Center Square after being read the emails. "The fact that they are viewing the current court as a ‘favorable venue’ for them I think is telling and highlights the fact that….the majority of the court is on the ballot is really going to be important.

"The line about the referendum and whether the court might be willing to essentially use a referendum as a way to avoid decision the constitutionality of the case, just shows that unfortunately this is more of a political question rather than an issue of ensuring that the right of the people to vote on legislation is upheld,” he added. 

The Center Square requested an interview with the AGO to discuss the emails. Instead, AGO Deputy Communications Director Mike Faulk wrote in an email that the discussion was because of the court's extensive rules on referendums.

This "was part of a preliminary discussion about legal strategy in a case that is now over," Faulk wrote. "The state Supreme Court deals with far more questions about mandamus and referendum powers than any other court in the state. They are far more familiar with the governing legal principles, which is why our attorneys described it as a favorable venue."

The Center Square recently reported that the AGO staff and the millionaire’s tax prime sponsor Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen, D-Seattle, worked closely to draft the bill so that it would “force” the state Supreme Court to reconsider almost a century’s worth of legal rulings that income is property as defined in the state Constitution.

In emails obtained by The Center Square, Pedersen wrote that a key goal of the tax was to get the Supreme Court to overturn the 1933 Culliton decision, which ruled that progressive income taxes are illegal because they violate the state Constitution’s uniformity clause for property taxes based on their class. A 1930 voters pamphlet advocating for the 14th Amendment that added a definition of property into the Constitution states that the purpose for doing so was to make it possible to tax income from stocks and bonds at a separate rate than other types of property, such as land. 

Other decisions since then have reaffirmed Culliton.

The rulings include:

• Jensen v. Henneford (1936)
• Power, Inc. v. Huntley, (1951), in which the court declared “it is no longer subject to question in this court that income is property.”
• Kunath v. City of Seattle (2019)

The original draft of the millionaire's tax did not include an emergency or necessity clause, which was added after Purcell recommended it to prevent a referendum. Purcell's remarks via email were used by Let's Go Washington as further evidence in their lawsuit that the bill was not necessary to enact the budget.

The Center Square reached out to the state Supreme Court’s Senior Communications Officer Lorrie Thompson by email and phone requesting an interview to discuss Smith and Purcell’s remarks, but did not receive a response.

SHREVEPORT, La. -- The LSUS Pilots’ baseball season came to an end Wednesday after a 7-4 loss to Mid-America Christian University, but not before the team showed resilience in front of its home crowd at Pilot Field in Shreveport.

Earlier in the day, the Pilots energized fans with an 11-inning 6-5 victory over Oklahoma Wesleyan, keeping their postseason hopes alive and giving supporters one more memorable moment during the bracket tournament.

For many fans, watching LSUS compete carried extra meaning after last season’s historic undefeated run to the NAIA championship. While this year proved to be more challenging on the field, supporters said they remain proud of the program and optimistic about its future.

“It gives the city something to be proud of, especially after last year,” fan Christopher Kouba said.

Kouba’s father said the team faced a tougher road this season after losing several key players, but credited the Pilots for continuing to battle throughout the year.

Fan and player parent Sean Sullivan said the extra-inning win earlier in the day gave supporters hope the team could continue its postseason run.

“There’s still a path,” Sullivan said. “It’s a tough path, but there’s always a path. So we’re hoping to keep watching baseball. Our favorite thing to do.”

Although the Pilots later fell in their second game of the day, fans and players alike praised the team’s determination throughout the season.

“Gritty group,” injured LSUS pitcher Luke Shelton said. “We got a lot of talent. We just got to put some pieces together. Close game right here and there. We just got to keep fighting and pull through.”

Now, the Pilots turn their attention to the offseason as they regroup and prepare for next year. Meanwhile, fans will be waiting for the return of baseball and another chance to pack the bleachers at Pilot Field.

(The Center Square) - Denise Powell won the Democratic nomination in Nebraska's second congressional district, according to projections from multiple media outlets. 

Powell edged out state Sen. John Cavanaugh in the closely watched race. Democrats view Nebraska's second congressional district as key to flipping control of the U.S. House of Representatives in November. 

Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., announced he would not run for reelection. In his place, Brinker Harding, an Omaha City Council member, secured the uncontested Republican nomination. 

"I'm so proud of this history-making campaign," Powell said. "Proud to have been the first Latina to ever file to run for federal office in the history of our state."

Harding has advocated for lowering taxes and reducing the national debt. 

“I will fight to cut your taxes, bring down gas and grocery prices, lower interest rates, create good-paying jobs and ensure America is the global leader in cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence,” Harding wrote. 

Powell spent her campaign highlighting the risk electing Cavanaugh would have posed. She said Cavanaugh's election to the seat could hurt Democratic makeup in the state Senate since Republican Gov. Jim Pillen would select his replacement. 

The Healthcare for Action political action committee endorsed Powell for the Democratic nomination. Anahita Dua, founder of Healthcare for Action, said Powell would defend abortion rights, expand healthcare options and fight insurance companies.

"Denise is a tireless champion for public health and a fearless advocate for working families," Dua said. "Healthcare will be central to Democrats' path to retaking the House in 2026 and Healthcare for Action remains committed to supporting strong public health advocates like Denise Powell in communities across the country."

The Cook Political Report ranks Nebraska's second congressional district as leaning in favor of Democrats. It highlights the district as a prime opportunity for Democrats to flip in 2026.

Voters in the Cornhusker State will return to the polls in November as Powell and Harding face off in the key district. 

(The Center Square) – Northern border crimes continue to be prosecuted against Canadian citizens for a range of multi-million-dollar scams targeting Americans nationwide. 

The U.S. investigations are being led by U.S. Customs and Border Protection Homeland Security Investigations, and multiple federal, state and local law enforcement agencies also working with Canadian authorities.

In the Southern District of Florida, a Canadian who overstayed his visa and was illegally living in Miami was indicted on wire fraud and money laundering charges in a $13 million cryptocurrency fraud scheme. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison.

In this case, Canadian Trenton Richard David Johnston is accused of impersonating cryptocurrency-related company support personnel to gain access to victims’ digital accounts and cryptocurrency wallets. He then allegedly stole roughly $13 million, spending at least $1 million “to lease luxury vehicles, purchase high-end jewelry, and finance an extravagant nightlife and entertainment lifestyle,” according to the charges. An investigation is ongoing; victims continue to be identified. 

In a “Grandparent Scam,” nearly 50 Canadian nationals, including Russian, Muslim and Indian men, have been charged in the District of Vermont. In this case, elderly Americans were targeted in more than 40 states to be defrauded. The first 25 Canadians were indicted last year. 

All but two, who remain at large, were arrested in Canada in response to a request from the U.S. Department of Justice. All alleged perpetrators live in Québec except for the alleged ringleader, who’s from Ontario and remains at large, according to the charges.

Another nine were separately charged. Their residencies are listed in Florida, New York, Montreal, Canada, California and Guangzhou, China, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Vermont said.

Seven additional Canadians were charged and arrested this month. Several are fighting extradition to the U.S. 

The scam allegedly occurred between 2021 and 2024 through a Montreal, Québec-based call center. It involved Canadians contacting elderly Americans in Vermont and 40 other states claiming they were their relatives, usually their grandchildren, saying they’d been arrested and needed bail money. Some claimed to be their relative’s attorney stating they needed bail money and directed them not to say anything because a gag order was in place.

The elderly victims were convinced to give money to an individual posing as a bail bondsman who came to their home. Instead, they were extorted millions of dollars, investigators found. The money was wired to Canada, sometimes through cryptocurrency, in order to obscure the source and identity of the perpetrators, according to the charges.

The transnational criminal enterprise’s sole intent was “defrauding hundreds of retirees of their life savings by preying on their emotions and deceiving them into thinking that their loved ones were in peril,” Thomas Demeo, IRS-CI Boston Field Office Acting Special Agent in Charge said in a statement. If convicted, each Canadian faces up to 20 years in U.S. federal prison.

In an ongoing human smuggling case in upstate New York, the latest of three Canadian-American-Indiana human smugglers pleaded guilty this week. An American citizen pleaded guilty last year. Two Canadians have been extradited to the U.S. and are awaiting trial. 

They’re being charged in connection to the smuggling of illegal foreign nationals, primarily Romanians and Indians, across the U.S.-Canada border through the Akwesasne Mohawk Indian Territory. The AMIR, a major smuggling hub, includes part of Ontario, Canada, two counties in upstate New York and islands on the St. Lawrence River, The Center Square reported.

During the Biden administration, a record number of illegal border crossers were reported coming from Canada primarily into Vermont and upstate New York, The Center Square reported. With limited resources to combat smuggling, First Nation chiefs, including from the AMIR, traveled to Texas to learn of ways to combat border crime, The Center Square exclusively reported. 

Canadian-American AMIR member Timothy Oakes pleaded guilty to four counts of human smuggling and four counts of smuggling causing death. In this case, an entire Romanian family and Oakes’ brother drowned after a boat capsized when crossing the river during inclement weather. 

According to the charges, Oakes used his home on Cornwall Island, Ontario, as a staging area prior to smuggling foreign nationals across the river by boat, earning $1,000 per person. Others involved in the scheme allegedly transported foreign nationals from mainland Cornwall to Cornwall Island in Canada, staged them on the riverbank, transported them by boat and by car once in the U.S., according to the charges.

His sentencing is scheduled for September. He faces between five years and life in prison.

(The Center Square) – President Donald Trump’s first visit to China in nearly 10 years has been met with pomp and circumstance as Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping engage in an extensive meeting.

The leaders of the world’s two superpowers engaged in many pleasantries as they held a bilateral meeting after a formal greeting, set against the backdrop of Chinese pageantry.

Both leaders set a tone of mutual respect for each other and the two countries.

“I always believed that our two countries have more common interests than differences. Success in one is an opportunity for the other, and a stable bilateral relationship is good for the world. China and the United States both stand to gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation. We should be partners, not rivals. We should help each other succeed, and prosper together, and find the right way for major countries to get along well with each other in the new era,” Xi told Trump.

Trump praised Xi as a “great leader,” underscoring the relationship between the two countries.

“You and I have known each other now for a long time. In fact, the longest relationship of our two countries that any president and president has had. And that’s to me, an honor. We’ve had a fantastic relationship. We’ve gotten along. When there were difficulties, we worked it out,” Trump told Xi.

“I would call you and you would call me, and whenever we had a problem…We worked that out very quickly, and we’re going to have a fantastic future together. Such respect for China, the job you’ve done. You’re a great leader…Sometimes people don’t like me saying it, but I say it anyway, because it’s true. I only say the truth. And I just want to say on behalf of all of the great delegation that we have, we have the greatest businessmen, the biggest and, I guess the best in the world,” Trump added.

While Trump appeared to make trade his top priority leading up to the meeting, he was accompanied by more than a dozen top business leaders from the U.S. in hopes of pushing trade issues with China.

The president headed into the meeting with a trade deficit with China of $202.1 billion in 2025, according to the Office of the United States Trade Representative. China is the third-largest trade partner with the U.S.

Despite Trump hoping to elevate the trade issue, Chinese leaders entered the meeting with another agenda – Taiwan.

China’s minister of foreign affairs spokesperson, Mao Ning, posted on X, emphasizing that Xi’s top issue with Trump is that if the U.S. doesn’t support China’s stance on Taiwan, it could jeopardize the bilateral relationship.

“President Xi stressed to President Trump that the Taiwan question is the most important issue in China-U.S. relations. If it is handled properly, the bilateral relationship will enjoy overall stability. Otherwise, the two countries will have clashes and even conflicts, putting the entire relationship in great jeopardy,” Ning wrote. “’Taiwan independence’ and cross-strait peace are as irreconcilable as fire and water. Safeguarding peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is the biggest common denominator between China and the U.S.”

China doesn’t recognize Taiwan as an independent country, causing tension, with the U.S. recognizing and supporting Taiwan’s independence.

The U.S. continues to sell weapons to Taiwan in defense of China, with the Trump administration having approved an $11 billion arms sale to Taiwan last year. A bipartisan group of lawmakers is pushing the administration to sell more weapons to the nation.

The bilateral meeting lasted more than two hours, and the leaders are scheduled to meet again before Trump departs from China on Friday afternoon.